Kultshur #4 Feat. Joel De Marzo
- Karim Yousry
- Jan 6
- 8 min read
(Disco & Chicago House Old School Goat)
What Kultshur has in store for you
We are thrilled to present the fourth episode of Kultshur, featuring an exclusive guest mix by the talented Joel Marzo. In our recent interview, Joel shared insights into his musical journey and the inspiration behind his label, True House LA.
It was a pleasure to host Joel DeMarzo for this episode! This time, I took on warm-up duties, spinning a mix of disco, house, and lounge music to set the perfect vibe.
After laying down the foundation, I handed over the reins to Joel for the second hour, allowing him to take us on an unforgettable musical journey.
With over two decades of experience, Joel has established himself as a prominent figure in the dance music scene. As the founder of True House LA, he has created a culture that celebrates classic sounds with a modern twist. His well put together mix of influences—from old school funk and disco to contemporary house—ensures that every performance is filled with surprises and let go moments.
The Mix and interview series:
Featured artist: Joel De Marzo
Join us for this exciting episode as we dig deeper into Joel's world of music and enjoy his mix!
Q1: Can you share with us how your journey in the music industry began, and what inspired you to start True House LA?
I have been around music all my life. My Dad and his brother are guitar players that play a lot of funk, and my Mom was into Disco and Elvis LOL! Around 12 years old I heard my first reggae album and was captivated by the roots Rhythm started to collect records. This lead me to start to listen to other types of music also. In high school I had some friends with turntables and we started playing house parties all over Santa Ana, CA.
We played everything from Hip-Hop, Funk, Dance, and Disco.
While they gravitated to more of a turntablist style I started mixing and blending the records to learn the art of DJing. I started learning percussion and followed that out of school into playing for a local reggae band called Zion Train.This helped me understand song writing and years later would be instrumental in my productions.
As I started to DJ more in the late 90’s I was mostly playing Trance and Techno which slowly led to me discovering the Chicago House music scene and DJ’s like Frankie Knuckles and Paul Johnson. I discovered Paradise Garage and Larry Levine and fell in love with the house music sound
I started True House LA after a 10 year hiatus from the industry. A lot had changed and it was easier to start a digital label then it was in the early days as we only had vinyl and it was costly to start.
I decided early on that we would support up and coming artists and create an international underground roster. The name came from a party I was throwing at the time called True House.
The reason for the name was to separate it from all the different genres that had been created as we wanted the DJ’s, dancers, and listeners to know that we would be releasing the underground sounds that drive our dance floors. No gimmicks just the type of music that creates the memories we all live for.
Q2: True House LA has been instrumental in supporting emerging talent. Could you tell us more about your approach to nurturing young artists and bringing their sound to the forefront?
Supporting the emerging talent has always been one of our goals. It is hard to get established in the industry and by giving them a platform to release music and create their brand has always been our goal.
I tend to be open minded about the sounds that are submitted and if they don’t fit our label then I try to point the artist in the best direction to release their music.
By giving them an understanding of how to present the music, themselves and the brand they are marketing, we are able to guide them and hope that they learn from our mistakes.I have no problem passing on this knowledge to artists that are willing to put in the work.
Q3: Hosting festivals and events is a significant part of True House LA's identity. What goes into the planning and execution of these events, and what sets them apart from others?
This is a great question and honestly this would take a 10 page write up to cover all in the ins and outs of what it takes. I have been fortunate enough to be able to host events in multiple countries and the experiences have been priceless.
Every country, city, and club/venue all have their own challenges. Mostly I try to curate an event that spreads our love for the music we play and create an environment that is positive and makes our dancers feel free and safe to express themselves. Planning takes on different meanings and most events are planned at least 6 months in advance if not a year.
It is a slow march to the event and making sure that all elements are equally addressed. This means securing the contracts for the DJ’s, performers, and the venue before anything else is put into play. Add in the marketing to sell tickets and trying to reach the right crowd is always a challenge in this current time. In the old days we would flyer events that had similar crowds to get the word out.
Now with social media being the main marketing vehicle you are hoping it reaches the right people.
In our local area this is not much of a problem as our visibility is different since our artists and myself tend to support the promoters and DJ’s in our community.
I usually take on the role of Production Manager which translates to making sure every aspect of the event is running smoothly.
This starts with the stage, security, door, and venue cooperation and ends hopefully with a lot of smiling faces!
Q4: Behind every successful event, there are logistical challenges. Can you provide insight into the behind-the-scenes logistics of managing festivals and events, and how you overcome any obstacles?
Success is measured in different ways with the ultimate goal of trying to make a profit so you can invest and grow your budget for the next event. There are lot of moving parts that most people don’t see as I already pointed out in the last question.
The last event I worked for Loco Disco OC we had a beach party and the head of Loco , Rob Moskavi, had to coordinate shade structures, stage, barricades/fencing, set up and breakdown of the event. All of us involved have our own strengths that we bring to the event and it takes a solid team to pull off a successful event.
In order to overcome the obstacles that present themselves you have to be willing to bend. I think the saying is bend like bamboo you don’t break, but oh you might almost! LOL!
Every environment presents its own unique challenges so you have to be prepared for just about anything.
An artist might get sick, miss a flight, or just no show and we have to be able to fill that slot as quickly as possible. Usually our residents are ready and willing so this helps a lot in case this happens.
You can loose money on an event, but if done correctly your brand will grow and hopefully reap the rewards on future endeavors. If the dancers and artists are happy that’s a win even if we don’t make money you can use that momentum and carry into your next event. If you give them the entertainment they are looking for the word spreads and more people want to be a part of it and make the events even stronger.
Other obstacles might be local law enforcement who do not like DJ type of events (at least in our area) because they think it attracts the wrong crowd, so we have to strive to make sure every event is peaceful and show them that this type of event is easy to manage as long as the correct safety measures are in place. This is also important because other venue owners will give you a referral and let them know that what we do is professional and not some fly by the seat of your pants promoter. Sometimes your ideas may not translate well to specific venues so it is important to vet out the right arena to throw your event.
Q5:Lastly, could you share any updates or exciting news about upcoming production releases or projects from True House LA that our audience should keep an eye out for?
Right now I am in the process of producing and releasing a full length album full of all kinds of different music. My first single from the album is out now on all platforms and its called Goin Round. It’s a mainstage groovy track that I have put a lot of time into. As for the label itself we have a lot music coming out from Paul Johnson (RIP), Teak Makai, Red Five, and many more artists over the next year.
I am a resident with Loco Disco OC so be on the lookout for more amazing local events. I am working on touring again across Europe for 2025 and that info will be released as the dates are booked. For the rest of the this year we should be attending the Amsterdam Dance Event in October and usually have a few gigs to play while I am there.
Otherwise just follow our soundcloud ( Joel De Marzo & True House LA ) , Mixcloud, and Instagram pages to keep up to date and see where this adventure takes us!
I really want to thank you for featuring my label and I! I love what you are curating and can’t wait to see where this takes you in this beautiful journey!
I would love to visit your country one day and share the True House LA vibes with you and your community!
Tracklist:
Hour 1 by Karim Yousry:
1. Lucky Sun, Alison David – Rain and Sunshine (Original Mix) [ Lucky Sun Recordings ]
2. Shiny Objects – Side to Side (Hot Toddy Remix) [ Rare Wiri Records ]
3. Peacey & Rona Ray – Playground (Peacey's Acid Dub) [ Atjazz Record Company ]
4. Coeo – The Stage Is Yours [ Shall Not Fade ]
5. Aladdin! – Funkadelire [ Farci Records ]
6. Lex (Athens) – Strip Town [ Delusions of Grandeur ]
7. Oscar Barila – Feels Right (Extended Mix) [ Glasgow Underground ]
8. Dkatt, Nic David – Aura [ FINNEST ]
9. mpeg (DE) – What's Real [ Permanent Vacation ]
11. Mihai Popoviciu – Solitude (Original Mix) [ Berg Audio]
12. Horsemen – Familiar Sensation [ Aterral ]
13. Jon Billick – Take Me Up [ House Cookin Records ]
14. Danny Samaei – Sweet Lie [ House Cookin Records ]
15. Lupin VS. Cat's Eye - Downtown Sai EDIT [ Unreleased ]
Hour 2 by Joel De Marzo:
1. Me & My Toothbrush – Spirits [ Sirup Music ]
2. Secret Sinz – NightBirdy [ Big Speaker Music ]
3. Angelo Ferreri – Funky Crazy [ Golden Factory Records ]
4. Animist – Why Cant we [ Robsoul Recordings ]
5. Blanco K – Piano Solo [ Moon Rocket Music ]
6. Stanny Abram – Fallacy [ Whore House ]
7. Dom Dolla – Saving Up [ The Six Zero Recordings ]
8. Marco Molina, Nishant, Bamoloi – SaxoGame [ WH Records ]
9. Dompe – Sunny [ Jackfruit Recordings ]
10. Da Funk Junkies – Discofried [ Cruise Music ]
11. Ron H – House Gangsta [ Bid Muzik ]
12. VinceExpo – Can’t Get Enough (FederFunk edit) [ Chronic Rhythm ]
13. Ivan Key – Strumpet [ Burnk Digital ]
14. Chris Lum – Big Tool (DJ Spen’s Cave man jungle boogie breakout mix) [ Moulton Music ]
15. Ghostbusterz – Every Breath [ Save The Nightlife ]
16. J.B. Boogie – Feel the Beat [ FederFunk Family ]
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